Financial stress is one of the worst feelings, especially when you feel like you’re not in control of the situation and there’s nothing you can do about it, crazy.
One thing about financial stress is we all go through it, Uhuru Kenyatta faces it, hell even Elon Musk goes through it.
While we can agree deep down there are many more important things in life than money, when you’re struggling financially, fear and stress can take over your peace of mind.
Here are some ways in which you can manage this stress.
If you 're going to basketball games at your local court with your friends, keep attending these games.
Engage yourself in physical activity that can improve your mood.
Get up at your normal time and stick to your usual routine. If you lose your routine, it can affect your eating habits, you may even stop cooking or find yourself junking on snacks instead of having proper meals.
Take a walk outside, appreciate the weather, and do some workouts at home in case the gym is too expensive.
Also, don’t forget to constantly update and share your CV while you can. Your next blessing may be around the corner.
We can bet on one thing, you can’t change everything that’s causing you stress, some stressful situations are completely out of our control. So why keep dwelling on things you can’t control? It only frustrates you more.
Keeping that in mind, give your time and priority to things you can control, for example, your daily or weekly budget. Now that you’re in a tough financial situation, you need to think about cost-cutting. Plan on that.
They didn’t lie when they said that a problem shared is a problem half solved.
Many of us consider money conversations taboo. With this mentality, we hardly disclose what we’re going through to our friends or family. Not very long ago a girl by the name of Sly Wanjira tweeted:
“Naeza kufa na mashida zangu especially financial aki. It’s so hard to ask for monetary help for me from anyone. So it baffles me when people just freely & easily ask for money even from people they don’t know or haven’t spoken to in years.”
100+ people retweeted this meaning it resonated with a lot of people. But it’s high time we let go of this mentality. Let’s normalize discussing your financial issues with someone you trust or your family because bottling up these issues will only make your financial situation worse.
When going through a tough time, some people tend to replace this frustration by engaging in activities that don’t serve their purpose. Activities like gambling, smoking, drinking, or even binge eating.
Stay on the lookout for such behaviors as they cause a lot of strain even in the relationships you may have at the time. Consider getting help from a professional before things get out of hand.
When things get tough, we forget to recognize the amazing things that are going well for us. We focus all our energy on the negatives.
While we’re not advocating for you to forget the reality, take some time and appreciate the good things in your life. Be thankful for your health. Give your mind a break from the continuous worry. Ease your mind child.
As we finish, we’d like to emphasize remembering what’s important. If the vacation you were supposed to go to is over your budget, don’t kill yourself trying to go just to avoid FOMO and end up being financially frustrated. Remind yourself that relationships, friends, and family matter more in comparison to material objects.
Stay happy and healthy.
